Highsmith, Rivers among those inducted to Ashley’s Hall of Fame
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WWAY) — After being founded around 25 years ago, Ashley has finally inducted their inaugural Hall of Fame class.
Five individuals and the 2007 state runner-up baseball team were chosen as the first group to be honored for their efforts as Eagles.
Current Pittsburgh Steelers Alex Highsmith is among the group. Recently, he was a finalist for the NFL’s “Man of the Year” award, but still believes this accolade manages to stand out.
“It’s awesome,” Highsmith said. “Especially for this being the honorary first class, it just means the world. A lot of my former high school teammates are here and everything. To be back in town for this is just awesome. I’m really grateful seeing some of my old coaches and everything like that, some of them getting inducted too. It’s just an awesome feeling.”
(Photo: Colton Emswiler/WWAY)
Another inductee is current WNBA player Saniya Rivers. The former girls basketball player of the year had her jersey retired by the Eagles in December. She says she is glad her alma mater still honors her accomplishments.
“It feels amazing,” Rivers said. “Obviously, I worked very hard for years. Seeing that I just got rewarded with the jersey retirement and now I’m being inducted to the Hall of Fame. It’s just an amazing honor. I know most people don’t have the opportunity, so I’m just blessed.”
Other inductees included MLB veteran Trevor Kelley as well as coaches Adrienne Gale and Brian Stewart.
